


School's Out

by mcnegan



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Character Death, Coach Negan (Walking Dead), F/M, Get Ready For Some Sad, mention of a car crash, mention of drunk driving
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-27
Updated: 2017-06-27
Packaged: 2018-11-19 15:17:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,730
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11316087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcnegan/pseuds/mcnegan
Summary: Bianca is a new teacher at the local high school and Coach Negan seems to be the only person there willing to accept her as a friend.





	School's Out

The staff at Richmond High had been less than welcoming since the first day of Bianca Wolfe’s employment there. Being a pretty blonde who looked much younger than her 29 years, it was common for people to treat her like a child or a ditzy moron, at the very least. She was accustomed to feeling outcasted in the education department, so her coworkers’ coldness didn’t bother her one bit.

The single person in the large high school who seems above acting petty and standoffish is the vulgar, loud-mouthed gym teacher, Coach Negan. Their first meeting was in the employee lounge during Bianca’s first week and the interaction was unexpected and borderline inappropriate. Bent over with an arm stuffed inside a vending machine, Bianca was startled by a loud whistle from the doorway. With a can of diet soda clutched in her hand, she spun around to look at her catcaller. Quirking a single manicured brow at the tall, handsome man leaning against the wall, she merely told him off in a tone dripping with boredom and hoped he’d leave her alone. On the contrary, Bianca’s disinterest seemed to fuel the man’s flirting and a relentless pursuit ensued. She’d been unable to escape the amount of contact the man thrust upon her and she somehow grew to like him in the way one might like an annoying older brother or a raggedy but friendly stray cat who keeps coming around for bits of food. 

A strange dynamic overflowing with sarcasm and dry humor developed between the two and before long, they were inseparable. Each morning they’d share in a short conversation as they made their way into the building; often times teasing or insulting one another. At every staff meeting or school-wide assembly, the pair could be found seated beside one another and whispering lowly to each other. Bianca had even begun to eat lunch in Coach Negan’s office every day, sometimes getting so involved in their talks that she’d be late for her next class period. 

“Come in!” Negan’s booming voice calls out through the closed door. 

Bianca twists the handle of the door, letting herself into the room as her heels click against the pale tile. Holding her lunch in one hand, she shuts the door over behind her and makes her way towards the large desk that takes up most of the space in the small office. 

“God damn, I just lost my appetite,” Negan groans when he spots the woman making her way towards him. 

“Aw, boo hoo. Guess you’ll just have to starve to death,” Bianca offers with false sympathy. 

Negan gasps dramatically with a hand braced over his heart. “You’re a cruel bitch, y'know that?” 

“And don’t you forget it,” she asserts, shaking a finger in his direction. 

“Ice cold…I like it,” Negan chuckles with a wide grin. 

They fall into comfortable chit-chat then, talking about their days and sharing stories about their unruly and ridiculous students. Bianca wipes tears from beneath her eyes as Negan tells a particularly entertaining story about one of their coworkers, her raucous laugh echoing around the small room. Negan fights a hearty chuckle of his own as he struggles to get through the rest of his tale. 

“So I told her, if you wanna see my balls, I’ll give you the key to the storeroom,” he guffaws, joining in with Bianca’s cackling. 

A sharp tapping against the door of the office catches their attention and the two quiet down after several seconds. Negan addresses the person on the other side of the door, his expression suddenly serious as Bianca continues to snicker softly. She tucks her chin to her chest, stabbing a fork into her salad as she tries not to laugh out loud and interrupt the student who enters the room. 

“H-here’s my essay, Coach,” the teen boy stutters nervously, laying a stapled stack of papers in front of Negan on the surface of his desk. 

“Next time you wanna act like a smartass in my class, you don’t get a second chance, Johnson,” Negan reprimands. “I’ll just fuckin’ flunk ya.” 

“You can’t–,” the young man attempts to debate, but Negan cuts him off with a loud retort. 

“I know what I’m about, son!” he barks. “Now get the fuck outta here.” 

Bianca chews slowly on a chunk of lettuce, smirking to herself as the boy scampers quickly from the room. She swallows her mouthful of food, watching as Negan obliviously pokes at the sandwich in front of him as if he hasn’t just told off a teenager. 

“Those kids are gonna form a mutiny against you one of these days,” Bianca chirps, swiping her thumb over the corner of her lips. 

“Oh come _on_ ,” Negan demands, his eyebrows raised and his expression offended. “You can’t tell me you don’t ever wanna curse out a few of those little shits now and then.” 

“Negan, I teach first graders…you can’t yell obscenities at 8 year olds,” she proclaims with an incredulous laugh. 

“Well, certainly not with _that_ attitude,” he mutters, rolling his eyes. Spotting the plastic bowl full of green, Negan nods in Bianca’s direction with a curious look on his face. “The fuck are you eatin’ over there? Rabbit food?” 

“It’s a _salad_ ,” she defends snottily. “Maybe something you should look into,” she snarks, shifting her eyes tauntingly to Negan’s stomach. The man is in great shape, but she can’t resist taking a swing at his ego. 

Before he has a chance to fire back with whatever ridiculous response he’s brewing, the bell rings shrilly, signifying the end of the period. Bianca gathers up her trash and tosses it into a plastic bag before standing up. She smooths her hands over her blue pencil skirt and offers a friendly smile to Negan as she turns away. 

“Good luck protecting your balls from the ladies,” she tosses over her shoulder with a delicate wave goodbye. 

• • • • • • • • • • 

Bianca had made good use of the school directory in the main office, perusing through it until she’d come across Coach Negan’s name. Beside his name she found his work email and telephone extension listed, as well as his birthday. She never understood why the school or any of the staff would need that information, but she’s glad to have found it. 

Rubbing her thumb over the wheel of the small toy clutched in her hand, Bianca strides confidently through the empty halls of the school building. Her lunch break started several minutes ago, though she found herself spending those ticking seconds debating whether or not she would join Negan. Today is his birthday and while she doesn’t know if their relationship warrants the exchange of gifts, she decided to get him something. The tiny Hot Wheels motorcycle had caught her eye and knowing Negan’s affinity for bikes, she knew it would be perfect. A small gift perhaps, but it’s the thought of the gesture that counts. 

She lets herself in through the open door of Negan’s office, spotting him sitting at his desk and staring up at the ceiling. With his feet propped up on the wooden surface, he chews away thoughtfully at the food in his mouth. Hearing the sound of Bianca’s heels, he turns his attention to the woman slipping into his office. He immediately spots the ecstatic grin across her pretty face and it raises his suspicions right away. 

“You that excited to see me, sweetheart?” he purrs. “Well, I’m honored.” 

“Don’t flatter yourself, Birthday Boy,” she chides happily as she plops the little motorcycle right in front of him. “I know you ride, so I thought I’d get you a little something. You can put it on your desk this way every time you look at it, you think of me. More than you already do, of course.” 

Negan smirks at Bianca’s sassy tone and cocky attitude as he slides his feet back to the ground. “Now who’s flattering themselves?” Bianca giggles, taking a seat on the other side of Negan’s desk as she starts to eat her lunch. 

“So how old are ya now? Already got your senior home picked out?” she gibes excitedly. 

“Miss Wolfe, I’ll have you know I am not a single day over fabulous,” Negan declares in a haughty tone, turning his nose up at her. When Bianca dissolves into a fit of giggles, Negan gives her the finger. 

“Didn’t your mother teach you any manners?” she wonders, though she promptly returns the offensive gesture. 

“Manners are for pussies and schoolgirls, of which I am neither,” he counters smoothly. 

The two eat in silence, scarcely acknowledging one another as they chew their respective food. Bianca flicks her wrist, checking the watch wrapped around it and seeing that there’s only a few minutes left of the period. As she collects the remnants of her meal, her fork falls to the floor with a clatter. She bends over to pick the utensil up and the movement causes her thin blouse to slip off her shoulder. When she sits back up, Negan is staring at her, his eyes locked onto the tiny bit of ink just below her collarbone. 

“Does the prim and proper school teacher have a _tattoo_?” he implores wondrously. 

“Oh…yeah,” Bianca admits, pulling her shirt away to expose the cute, colorful bumblebee to the man. “My grandmother used to call me Bumblebee. I got it done when she passed.” 

“Aw gosh, isn’t that just precious?” Negan teases in a ridiculous voice, sounding very much like Goofy. 

Bianca is ready to be insulted by Negan’s insensitive comment, but she stops when she sees the man pulling up the sleeve of his long, white t-shirt. Glancing at his tan forearm, she can see a tattoo of his own. She can’t read the sweeping script so she leans forward, squinting slightly as she reads the letters. 

“Bisou was my dog. I saved her from Death’s doorstep and raised her from when she was practically a newborn,” he offers somberly. “Got this when I put her to sleep.” 

Bianca smiles sadly at Negan’s confession and the emotion in his voice. “So you do have a heart after all,” she whispers, her tone sincere and free of any humor. 

“Alright, enough of this feely wheely crybaby shit,” Negan announces, sweeping his hand in a shooing motion. “Don’t you got some brats you gotta teach coloring to or something?” 

Turning towards the door, Bianca snorts at Negan’s dismissal as he tries to avoid his own emotions. Before she can swing the door open and head to her own classroom, Negan’s low voice stops her. She peers over her shoulder, waiting for him to continue. 

“Thanks,” he murmurs gratefully. Bianca merely nods as she places her hand on the doorknob. She eases the door open and hears Negan say something else. "Hey. Maybe I can give you a ride sometime…on my motorcycle,“ he states, pausing for his own crude joke. “If you were agreeable to it.” 

“Are you asking me on a date?” Bianca kids, knowing that though Negan is just being as friendly as he’s capable of, he has other intentions in mind. 

“That depends. Do you put out on the first date?” he ponders. 

Bianca throws her head back as she cackles at Negan’s transparency. “I gotta give you props. You’ve been trying to get in my pants since the moment we met and there’s no end in sight.” 

“Why do you think I like ya so damn much? Any other woman would drop her panties and bend over if I so much as look at them. But you…well you’re a challenge. And I love a good challenge,” he grins. 

“I’m honored to be your source of entertainment,” Bianca scoffs good-naturedly. “You keep on trying, pal.” 

“So whaddya say?” Negan asks. “Wanna go for a ride this weekend?” 

Bianca considers Negan’s invitation for a moment before ultimately accepting. Making her exit from his office, she walks lightly down the hallway with a huge smile across her face. She’d been playing hard to get with Negan, but she has to admit that she finds his dogged attention quite flattering. His charming confidence and good looks are just an added bonus. Unlocking the door to her classroom, Bianca can hardly focus on organizing and preparing for her class as her mind is fully occupied with the enigmatic, foul gym teacher. 

• • • • • • • • • • 

Negan had put off coming here as long as he possibly could. With his hands stuffed nervously into his jean pockets, he shuffles at a slow pace down the paved path. The environment has him feeling uneasy and creeped out, but he mentally berates himself for being such a pussy and pushes himself to continue walking. 

Reports of the crash had been all over the news and splashed across the front page of the local newspaper for the past few days. He couldn’t have avoided the constant reminder if he wanted to. On his way here, he had to drive past the crash site – blanketed in statues, crosses, and bundles of beautiful flowers. He tried not to look at the black skid lines marring the pavement or the destroyed guardrail, but he couldn’t seem to take his eyes off of them as he rode by slowly. 

Blowing a sharp breath through his nose, he focuses on the task at hand. His booted feet swish quietly through the lush, green grass as he weaves in and out of the granite headstones, carefully reading the names etched into each one. He knows he’s just avoiding the real reason he’s here. He doesn’t need to read the carved monikers as he knows the particular plot he’s looking for is the fresh one with the mound of soft dirt still covering it, not yet packed down by the elements. 

After much hesitation, Negan forces himself in the direction of the recently dug grave. He stops directly in front of it, ignoring the moisture in his eyes as he crouches in front of the pristine grave marker. Bracing his hand on the surface, he presses his forehead atop his outstretched arm. He felt bad for missing the funeral, but he couldn’t bring himself to stand around with a bunch of crying people he hardly knew. He’d much rather grieve on his own and in private. Still, he felt obligated to come here and say his goodbyes. 

“I shoulda known you would’ve done anything to keep me from getting in your pants,” he jokes shakily, awkwardly trying to cope with the foreign emotions overwhelming him. “You managed to be a pain in my ass right up to the end and then some.” 

Sniffling softly, Negan continues holding back the unfamiliar tears threatening to spill from his eyes. He hadn’t known Bianca well, but he was positive he was the closest thing she had to a friend since moving here. He’d even developed an affinity for the woman, thoroughly enjoying the time they spent together. Not many people could put up with him and give him as much shit as he gave to them and he respected Bianca for that. Maybe even liked her. Unfortunately, they’d never had the chance to explore the possibilities of their connection. 

Before their weekend date, Bianca had been the victim of a car crash on her way home from work. She’d stayed late to finish up some paperwork and consequently been hit by a drunk driver on a winding back road. The accident had pushed her car off the side of the road and her vehicle rolled down a steep embankment. She had lost her life because of some asshole who had one too many drinks and decided to get behind the wheel. Negan shakes his head in anger and despair, the salty liquid gathering in his eyes finally streaking down his cheeks. 

Patting his open palm against the cold granite, Negan eases himself back into a standing position. He scans his eyes over the gray stone, reading the large letters that spell out her name through his misty eyes. He digs into his pocket, wrapping his fist tightly around the object inside. When he withdraws his hand, he reaches towards the flat edge of the headstone, opening his hand and placing the object gently atop it. 

“Goodbye, Bumblebee,” he whispers sadly, perfectly centering the tiny toy motorcycle before turning away and heading back to his bike.


End file.
